Romney's Mormon Question

Is the U.S. ready to elect a president whose religion has become such an issue?

Danny Wilcox Frazier / Redux for TIME

Romney and his wife Ann, seated at center, have five sons and ten grandchildren. When they wed in 1969, her family could not attend the temple wedding because only Mormons were allowed.

John F. Kennedy's election in 1960 was supposed to have laid the "religious question" to rest, yet it arises again with a fury. What does the Constitution mean when it says there should be no religion test for office? It plainly means that a candidate can't be barred from running because he or she happens to be a Quaker or a Buddhist or a Pentecostal. But Mitt Romney's candidacy raises a broader issue: Is the substance of private beliefs off-limits? You can ask if a candidate believes in school vouchers and vote for someone else if you disagree with the answer....

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